For the First Time She Thought Twice
by Chloes-Cheese
Summary: After the events of Snow Falls, Snow wrestles with some doubts about her future when she runs into Charming again. "She said that the ring didn't suit her. She lied." Spoilers for Snow Falls. Oneshot. Snow White/Prince Charming


**Disclaimer: you know the drill, I own nothing but the plot.**

**Author's Note: oh well would you look at that? Another Once Upon A Time ficlet with a day? How can this be? WITCHCRAFT!**

**Haha. No seriously, I couldn't help myself. This one is bit of a companion to It Should've Been Me in that it takes place in Fairy Tale land right after Snow Falls.**

**WARNING: contains 1x03 Snow Falls spoilers. If you haven't seen it, you probably shouldn't read this.**

**And off we go:**

She said that the ring didn't suit her. She lied.

That ring had suited her better than her own skin. But she couldn't exactly tell him that.

The whole week following, the spot where the ring had sat for less than a minute twinged at the memory. Snow found this thoroughly irritating as she did not need any lingering doubts distracting her from achieving the secluded life she had been striving for. She'd accepted that she was destined to live alone when she ran for her life two years ago. No happily ever after, no big wedding or prince of her own as she had dreamt of as a little girl. She'd come to grips with the fact that, in exchange for breathing every day that those dreams of a husband and a family one day had to die.

Then in walked the charming Prince James with his smile and his chivalry. Him and his stupid smile put the thought into her head that there might be a man valiant and kind enough to land her in a poofy white dress one day.

Snow, of course, found this incredibly annoying as that stupid twinge forged a link between her and the land she had worked so hard to sever all ties with.

Here she was, so close to the freedom she'd been reaching for all these years and now she was pausing.

The whole thing was ridiculous. James was an honorable prince engaged to a prim and proper princess to do what was best for his kingdom. And who was she? A runaway, a wanted fugitive and a failed princess.

They'd had a wonderful adventure together, to be sure, but that was just that. Just because they saved each other's lives didn't make them soul mates. At least that's what she kept telling herself anyways.

Why did she even try on that blasted ring? That was the question that kept bouncing around her head as she hunted and traded and hid the week after. But no matter what searching or avoiding the issue altogether she attempted, she still couldn't find an answer. In that moment it had just seemed like the right thing to do and that was the only explanation she could come up with.

Whenever she paused to breathe or laid down at night she saw Charming with his enchanting baby blues and the look on his face after she went back for him and it was infuriating. She wanted to dream of a life free from the constant threat of ambush, wanted to imagine what it would be like to be so far away that she wouldn't have to constantly watch her back but instead Charming prevailed and whispered 'Always' in her dreams.  
>During the day, when she found her thoughts wandering to her day with the prince, she made herself run faster, work harder, do whatever she could to get him out of her mind.<p>

It didn't work.

Eight days later and the charming prince had yet to fade from her head and she began to wonder if she would ever be able to forget about him. Distracted as she was by her conflicting thoughts, she didn't notice the presence standing behind a tree to the left of her new cave hiding spot until they spoke.

"Took me awhile to find you this time; I must be getting rusty." The voice spoke as the owner stepped into the open.

Snow jumped, horrified and alarmed, whipping out her hunting knife and throwing it in the direction of her intruder.

Fortunately, Charming ducked out of the way just in time for it to embed itself in the bark of his tree.

"Well hello to you too." He quipped, pulling the knife out.

"I am so sorry." Snow exclaimed, still clutching at her chest in surprise and out of habit. "You just spooked me is all. My defenses are a little less than they used to be."

James looked down to where her hand clutched at the empty space where the fairy dust used to rest and remembered why he was there, "Yes, I am sorry about that."

"Don't be." Snow replied with a wave of her hand, her heartbeat stabilizing, "You would've done the same for me."

He smiled his most charming smile as he reminded her, "Yes, I believe I did."

She rolled her eyes at him as she stepped forward to take back her knife. She whacked him with the flat of the blade when he handed it to her and muttered, "Cheeky."

He laughed, "I'm just glad I found you. After three days I was starting to think you'd already left."

"Not yet. I'm not quite ready to leave." She assured him, leaving out that he was the main reason she couldn't make herself go.

"Well I'm glad," he commented with a smile, "because I still owe you."

She cocked her head, confused, "What are you talking about?"

"Your fairy dust. The whole realm knows that the Evil Queen is after you and when she catches up to you, you need to be able to protect yourself. And thanks to me, you are out a serious advantage." Prince James explained.

"I can get by on my own." Snow defended, hating to appear weak, especially among men.

"Of that I am well aware." Charming chuckled, rubbing the new scar on his chin, "Nevertheless, I feel it is my duty as a gentleman-"

Snow scoffed at that, charming he may be, but no gentleman strung up a woman in a net.

"Fine, my duty as a friend then," He corrected with a wry grin, "to make up for your loss on my account."

"Oh, so we're friends now?" Snow teased though the thought of being friends with him made her smile.

"If you'd like." He offered, semi-nervous about the invitation and secretly hoping she'd accept. He elaborated, "I figured a runaway princess could use all the friends she could get."

"Is that so?" she challenged, touched by the offer, but not wanting to appear too eager.

"Yeah," he declared, "being on the run like you are your only friends are probably the birds and the squirrels."

Snow laughed out loud at the thought, "Oh yes, they are my very best friends. We sing to each other every morning."

The prince laughed along as he noted what a beautiful laugh she had, "I'm sure you do."

Snow was so amused at the idea it took her a moment to stop laughing, while James found her so contagious he couldn't help but laugh along until, short of breath, they finally regained control.

"No seriously," he insisted, taking the conversation down a more serious direction once more, "let me help. You are all alone out here, and if those trolls were any indication, you need someone to watch your back."

"Oh all right." She relented, delighted at the smile he gave in return, "We can be friends."

"Well that settles it then." Prince James announced suddenly, reaching to pull a familiar-looking purse out from a pouch on his belt. And before Snow could properly convince herself that he wasn't doing what she thought he was doing, he pulled out his mother's precious wedding ring and held it out to her, "Here."

"Wh-what?" Snow blanched, at a complete loss for words as he handed her the thrice cursed ring that had haunted Snow's hand for the last eight long days.

"I want you to hold onto this." He elaborated as if it all made perfect sense.

"Why?" she asked, her brain not working right as she stared at the ring in her fingers. While she had unwillingly fantasized about the two of them ending up together the last few days, even she realized that it was way too soon for him to make an offer of marriage.

"Because I cost you something that meant a lot to you so it's only fair that you should hold onto something of great importance to me until I can replace what you now lack." He summed up very reasonably.

Snow was still having trouble getting past the fact that he was giving her a wedding ring even if it was just for a little while.

"But this is your mother's wedding ring." She protested.

"Of that I am well aware." He acknowledged.

"But how can you just give this to me?" she question, wondering why he didn't see anything wrong with the arrangement.

"It is mine to do with what I will until I take a wife." He informed her steadily.

A very obvious thing occurred to Snow just then, "But you _are_ engaged. Won't your fiancée be needing this?"

"She would if she was still my fiancée." He answered calmly.

That certainly stopped Snow in her tracks.

"What happened?" she inquired, her curiosity piqued at this latest development.

"My kingdom found another solution to the problem between our lands." James revealed.

"I'm sorry." Snow said quietly, not sure of what to say as the hope in her heart for the two of them grew by the minute.

"I'm not." He confessed bitterly. "You were right about us. I was only going along with it because I didn't see any other way. But the two of us could never have been happy together. Thank you for making me see that."

"Your welcome." She said softly as she let the news wash over her with its wonderful possibilities.

They were quiet for a moment before a question bubbled its way to the surface of Snow White's thoughts, "Do you think you'll find another princess to marry soon?"

"I don't know yet." Charming admitted, looking up at Snow through his eyelashes, unsure and adorable, "I'll just have to wait and see."

Snow's heart had relocated to her throat without her permission and was making it hard for her to think. The way he was looking at her she could almost believe that he was talking about her and that she wasn't the only one who felt something between them. Almost.

That was always Snow's problem in her opinion, she was too prone to imagine and believe. She'd spent her childhood with her head in the clouds, dreaming of princes on white horse doing daring deeds. And here she was again and it was worse than ever.

And all because that stupid ring. From the moment she put it on her hope had sprung up in ways she couldn't control; sending her visions of happily ever afters. The moment she put on the ring was the worst and the most heartbreaking. With the way it fit so perfectly, felt so right and the way he looked at her as if she was the world, it was so easy to imagine that they were in love, that he had proposed and that she wouldn't have to spend her life alone.

But it wasn't true. Her fantasies never were.

But here they were again; he had found her just like he promised. There was no spoiled princess waiting in a castle for him. It was just him and her all alone in the forest with his mother's ring held out between them in her hands.

Snow shook her head, coming back to earth, responding almost to herself, "I guess you will."

Neither said a thing as they both secretly dreamed of a future in which they could both be together.

Breaking the silence, Prince James cleared his throat nervously, "Well, must be off."

"So quickly?" the runaway princess couldn't help but ask, disappointed.

"Sadly, yes," he replied, putting the pouch away as he prepared to leave, "the duties of a prince never cease."

"Will I see you again soon?" she found the words coming out of her moth almost of their own volition.

He gave her his most dashing smile, "You can count on it. I can come up with reason enough to warrant a return to the forest before the next moon in two weeks time."

Snow anxiously chewed her lip as she thought of the gold she had saved up. In all honesty, she could've have left two days ago and have been far from the reach of the queen already but suddenly she had a really big reason to stay.

The prince dubbed Charming, caught the anxiety and the worry in her eye as he guessed her thoughts and went to stand very close to her, holding her chin in his hand as he spoke softly, "If you are in enough danger that you need to leave, don't stay on my account. It may take me a longer time of it, but I will always find you."

She couldn't help the small smile at his words, their words, the ones that they seemed to share now as she thought very carefully. Not going into her internal struggle and the doubts she had, she simply said, "I know you will."

His responding smile was the warmest and sweetest thing that she had ever seen. And though it would take her a very long time to admit it to herself, she realized, in that moment, because of the way that he looked at her like no one else had, she would never be able to leave.

"Good," he said, completely unaware of the affect he had on her, "Then I shall see you before too long."

"Indeed you shall." She agreed, unable to not smile back at the look he gave her.

A content smile spread across his face, the charming prince gave Snow White a half bow before turning around and going back the way he came.

Snow stood there longer than was probably safe as she watched him go, unable to look away until he faded from view behind the tall trees and the sounds of his departure could no longer be heard.

For better or worse, Snow White had made an unlikely friend in the Prince named James, and though she knew there would come a time when she regretted not leaving right then, she couldn't be sorry about that now.

Despite her best efforts, she had become taken with a prince and from that moment on, she knew without a doubt that her life would never be the same.

**Author's Note: And there we have it!**

**I clearly cannot be stopped; Once Upon A Time is just so good I had to write this.**

**Hope you all liked it. comment or review please.**

**I'm listing this as complete because it kind of is in my head. If I get inspiration later on as the show goes on, who knows? I might end up writing more, but for now this is it because I do have other stories to get back to.**

**I was a little unsure about posting this so feedback is love!**


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